Two weeks after Katie Holmes filed for divorce, the 50-year-old star arrived in New York City on Tuesday and was photographed carrying his daughter into a hotel. It is his first visit since he and Holmes, 33, reached a divorce settlement on July 7.

"Tom looked really happy," an observer in New York tells PEOPLE.

"He's been dying to see her," says a source of Cruise, who finished shooting his latest movie, Oblivion, on Sunday in California. Cruise learned of Holmes's divorce filing while shooting the same film on location in Iceland. And although he and Suri have spoken frequently since the split, he has not seen her in person since mid-June.

Currently, the pair plan to spend several days together in the city, where Suri is expected to attend a local private school this fall.

Sources close to Cruise and Holmes say the former couple will work together to make sure that hand-offs are as pleasant as possible. "They both know they are going to have to make decisions together regarding Suri for many, many years," says the source. "And they know she loves both her parents."